Ice Cream Crunch Recipes

PRALINE ICE CREAM

Steps:

• In a heavy saucepan, heat milk to 175°; stir in sugar until dissolved. Whisk a small amount of hot mixture into eggs; return all to the pan, whisking constantly. Cook, stirring constantly, over low heat until mixture is just thick enough to coat a metal spoon and a thermometer reads at least 160°. Do not allow to boil. Remove from heat immediately., Quickly transfer to a large bowl; place bowl in a pan of ice water. Stir gently and occasionally for 2 minutes. Stir in cream and vanilla. Press plastic wrap onto surface of custard. Refrigerate several hours or overnight., Fill cylinder of ice cream freezer two-thirds full; freeze according to the manufacturer's directions. (Refrigerate any remaining mixture until ready to freeze.) Transfer ice cream to freezer containers, allowing headspace for expansion. Freeze 2-4 hours or until firm. Repeat with any remaining ice cream mixture., For candied pecans, in a heavy skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg; cook and stir until sugar is dissolved. Add pecans; cook and stir 2-3 minutes or until coated. Spread pecans onto a greased foil-lined baking sheet. Cool completely., For sauce, combine butter, water and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan. Cook and stir over medium-low heat until butter is melted. Add sugar; cook and stir until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat without stirring. Boil 4 minutes. Stir 6-8 minutes or until mixture is caramel-colored. Remove from heat. Carefully stir in cream until smooth. Serve caramel sauce and candied pecans over ice cream.

CHOCOLATE CRUNCH ICE CREAM

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, heat milk to 175°; stir in 1/2 cup sugar until dissolved. In a small bowl, whisk egg yolks and remaining sugar. Stir in coffee granules and bittersweet chocolate. , In small bowl, whisk a small amount of hot mixture into egg yolks; return all to pan, whisking constantly. Cook over low heat until mixture is just thick enough to coat a metal spoon and a thermometer reads at least 160°, stirring constantly. Do not allow to boil. Remove from heat immediately. , Quickly transfer to a large bowl; place bowl in a pan of ice water. Stir gently and occasionally for 2 minutes. Stir in cream and vanilla. Press plastic wrap onto surface of custard. Refrigerate several hours or overnight., Line a baking sheet with waxed paper; spread melted semisweet chocolate to 1/8-in. thickness. Refrigerate for 20 minutes; chop coarsely., Fill cylinder of ice cream freezer two-thirds full with custard; freeze according to manufacturer's directions. (Refrigerate any remaining mixture until ready to freeze.), Transfer ice cream to freezer containers, allowing headspace for expansion. For each batch, stir in some of the chopped chocolate, almonds and toffee bits. Freeze 2-4 hours or until firm.

STRAWBERRY CRUNCH ICE CREAM CAKE

Steps:

• Line a 9x9-in. baking pan with parchment. Preheat oven to 350°. Finely crush 24 cookies. In a small bowl, mix cookie crumbs and butter. Press onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake until firm, 25-30 minutes. Cool on a wire rack., Spread vanilla ice cream onto crust; freeze, covered, until firm. Spread with strawberry ice cream and then whipped topping; freeze, covered, until firm. , Coarsely crush remaining cookies. Combine cookie crumbs and freeze-dried strawberries; sprinkle over whipped topping. Freeze, covered, until firm, 8 hours or overnight. Remove cake from freezer. Lifting with parchment, remove from pan. Gently peel off parchment. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting. If desired, garnish with fresh strawberries.

ICE CREAM CRUNCH

Steps:

• Combine flour, oats, and brown sugar. Stir well. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in pecans. Spray a 13x9x2 inch pan with cooking spray. Press the crumb mixture in the bottom of the pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Stir the crumb mixture, and let cool in the pan.
• Sprinkle half of the crumb mixture into a 9 inch square pan. Drizzle 1/4 cup chocolate syrup and 1/4 cup caramel topping over the crumb mixture in the pan. Spoon the ice cream into the pan, spreading evenly.
• Top with the remaining crumb mixture, chocolate syrup, and caramel topping Cover and freeze until smooth. Cut into squares and serve.
• Cooking time does not include freezer time.

BLACKBERRY CRUNCH NO-CHURN ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Place an 8-inch square pan in the freezer for 30 minutes. Combine the jam and blackberries in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the blackberries soften and the jam becomes liquidy, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• Beat the cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla and salt in a large bowl with a hand-held mixer until smooth. Set aside. (Wash and dry the beaters.)
• Beat the heavy cream in a large bowl with the hand-held mixer until stiff peaks form. Fold the cream cheese mixture into the whipped cream.
• Spoon half of the mixture into the frozen pan. Set aside some of the cookies to sprinkle on top. Sprinkle the cream mixture with half of the remaining crushed cookies and fold gently to incorporate the cookies in the cream. Spoon half of the jam on top and swirl with a wooden skewer or chopstick. Repeat the process with the remaining cream, jam and cookies. Sprinkle the reserved cookies on top.
• Cover tightly with plastic wrap and freeze until firm, at least 6 hours but preferably overnight. To serve, let the ice cream stand at room temperature for about 5 minutes before scooping into serving bowls.

ICE CREAM CRUNCH CAKE

Steps:

• Put a 9-inch springform pan in the freezer for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, let 1 container vanilla ice cream soften at room temperature.
• Remove the pan from the freezer. Spread a 1/2-inch-thick layer of softened vanilla ice cream on the bottom and up the sides of the pan. (If the ice cream gets too soft, return to the freezer.) Freeze until firm, about 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, pulse the chocolate wafers in a food processor to break into large crumbs. Add the chocolate shell topping and pulse until the crumbs are moist, about 5 pulses; set aside.
• Let the chocolate ice cream soften at room temperature, about 15 minutes. Spread over the vanilla layer, firmly packing the ice cream into the pan. Spread the chocolate crumb mixture over the chocolate ice cream. Freeze until set, about 1 hour.
• Remove the remaining container vanilla ice cream from the freezer 15 minutes before assembling the final layer. Spread the ice cream over the crumb layer, packing it tightly, then smooth the top with an offset spatula. Freeze until firm, about 2 hours.
• To unmold, wipe the outside of the pan with a hot cloth, then run a hot knife around the inside; unlatch and remove the side. If the ice cream cake is too soft, refreeze 20 minutes.
• Spread 3 cups whipped cream over the top and sides of the cake. Freeze until set, about 20 minutes. Put the remaining 2 cups whipped cream in a pastry bag fitted with a star tip; pipe along the top and bottom edges of the cake and decorate with sprinkles. Return to the freezer; remove 15 minutes before serving and slice with a hot knife.

STRAWBERRY CRUNCH ICE CREAM BARS

Steps:

• For the strawberry ice cream: Heat the heavy cream and half-and-half in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until bubbles form around the edges, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.
• Meanwhile, beat the sugar, honey and egg yolks in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until pale yellow. While whisking, gradually add a little of the hot cream mixture to the egg mixture until combined. Gradually add the remaining cream until all is incorporated, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan and stir in the freeze-dried strawberry powder. Cook, whisking constantly, over medium heat until the mixture is thickened and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Stir in a few drops of red food coloring, if desired. Cool completely over an ice water bath, then process in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.
• Spoon the ice cream into a 9-inch square baking pan lined with parchment paper or plastic wrap. Transfer to the freezer and freeze until very firm, at least 3 to 4 hours or up to overnight.
• Meanwhile, make the strawberry crunch: Place the sandwich cookies in a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, 3 or 4 times. Add the gelatin and melted butter and pulse just until combined. Spread the mixture on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and let stand until dry.
• Remove the ice cream from the freezer. Lift the ice cream on the parchment from the baking pan. Cut into 8 bars. Insert a popsicle stick in the bottom of each bar. Dredge each bar in the strawberry crunch mixture. (Each bar should be evenly coated all over.) Transfer the coated bars to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Freeze 1 hour to firm up before serving.

ICE CREAM CRUNCH

Steps:

• In a large saucepan over medium heat, cook butter and brown sugar until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. , In a large bowl, combine cereal, coconut and nuts; add sugar mixture and stir until coated. Press half into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. dish. Spread ice cream over crust. Top with remaining cereal mixture. Freeze until firm.

NO-CHURN COFFEE-CARAMEL CRUNCH ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Whisk the condensed milk, espresso powder, 1 tablespoon heavy cream and the salt in a large bowl until smooth. (The espresso powder may look speckled.)
• Beat the remaining 1 1/2 cups heavy cream in a separate large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes. Fold about half of the whipped cream into the condensed milk mixture with a rubber spatula until combined, then fold in the remaining whipped cream until no white streaks remain.
• Dot the mixture with the dulce de leche and sprinkle with all but a few teaspoons of the toffee bits; drag a rubber spatula through the mixture to lightly swirl.
• Spoon the mixture into a freezer-safe 9-by-5-inch loaf pan or 2-quart baking dish. Dot with more dulce de leche and sprinkle with the remaining toffee bits; drag a rubber spatula through the top to lightly swirl. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until firm and scoopable, at least 6 hours or overnight.

COFFEE-PRALINE CRUNCH ICE CREAM CAKE

Steps:

• Prepare the fudge sauce: Set a fine-mesh sieve over a medium bowl. In a medium saucepan, combine the heavy cream, sugar, butter and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until the butter is melted and the sugar has dissolved, about 2 minutes.
• Whisk in the cocoa powder and cook for another minute or two, whisking occasionally, until the mixture is thick and glossy. Run the sauce through the sieve into the bowl, working out any lumps directly in the sieve. Stir in vanilla. Let cool completely, about 1 hour. (You should have about 2 cups.) About 30 minutes before you assemble the cake, remove the ice cream from the refrigerator to soften.
• To assemble the cake, spray a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan lightly with nonstick cooking spray. (This is just to help keep the plastic in place.) Press plastic wrap into the pan, making it as smooth as possible against the bottom and sides of the pan, leaving a 3-inch overhang on each of the two long sides.
• Spread one third of the softened ice cream (about 2 cups) evenly over the bottom of the pan. (If your ice cream is still too firm to spread, cut it into slices, arrange them in a layer and smooth using an offset spatula.) Lay 3 crackers over the top, breaking them to fit as needed. Top with 1/3 of the fudge sauce (about ⅔ cup), using an offset spatula to spread evenly, and half of the praline, patting into an even layer. Top with another 1/3 of the ice cream, 3 more crackers, 1/3 more fudge sauce and the remaining praline. Finish with the remaining 1/3 of ice cream and 4 more crackers. Use the plastic overhang to wrap the cake up tightly and freeze until firm, at least 4 hours and preferably overnight.
• To serve, unwrap the plastic wrap, then quickly rub the outside of the pan with a warm, moistened kitchen towel to loosen. Flip out onto a serving plate and remove the plastic wrap. Top with whipped cream and more chopped praline. Cut slices with a knife dipped in hot water. (If too hard to slice, let sit for a few minutes to soften.) Serve with the remaining fudge sauce, warmed, if desired.